key lime meltaways

These little key lime meltaway cookies DO melt in your mouth. They also have just the right amount sweetness from the dusting of powdered sugar and zing from the copious amounts of key lime zest in them. I imagine that you can turn these into any meltaway flavor by switching the zest and juice to either orange, lemon, even grapefruit or by all means just using everyday limes which are in the original recipe.

I formed my dough into 1-inch diameter logs, so when I sliced my cookies they were about the size of a quarter. Perfect little one-bite bursts of sunshine. 

Key Lime Meltaways
adapted from Martha Stewart Living, December/January 1998/1999 and smitten kitchen
makes 6+ dozen quarter-sized cookies


INGREDIENTS
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter @ room temperature
1 cup of confectioners' sugar ***a.k.a. powdered sugar*** 
finely grated zest of 4 - 6 key limes ***I used 6 because I wanted them to taste lime-y***
2 tablespoons fresh key lime juice
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1-3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt 

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, cornstarch, and salt. Set aside.

Cream unsalted butter and 1/3 cup confectioners' sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment or hand held mixer. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Add the key lime zest, juice, and vanilla. Mix until fully incorporated and fluffy.

Add your flour mixture to your butter mixture and mix on low speed until just combined.

To make these cookies into bite-size, divide the dough into thirds. Place each third onto a piece of 8-inch X 14-inch piece of parchment paper or equivalent. Fold one of the longer ends over the dough. Hold the bottom side of the folded parchment and using a bench scraper or ruler, press and push on the dough that it forms a log approximately 1-inch in diameter and 10 inches long. You should have 3 rolls.

Refrigerate logs until cold and firm, at least 1 hour. ***Cookie logs can also be frozen when you need a burst of sunshine.***

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Remove parchment from logs; cut into 1-1/4 inch thick rounds. On parchment lined cookie sheets, space cookie rounds 1 inch apart. Bake cookies until barely golden, about 13 minutes, rotating halfway through. ***If baking cookie dough straight from freezer, cooking time may be increased an additional 2-3 minutes.*** 

Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool for 8 - 10 minutes. 

Place the remaining 2/3 cup confections' sugar into a large Ziplock bag. While still warm, gently toss the cookies in the confectioners' sugar until completely dusted.

Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 weeks.

basic muffins

My pantry and frig are ALWAYS stocked to make anything. I have on hand basic staples for baking - eggs, butter and milk in my frig, and some sort of frozen fruit in my freezer. The base of these muffins can be made with everyday staples from your kitchen and the blueberries can swapped out for your favorite mix-ins.


I found this recipe many moons ago from Martha Stewart"s Everday Food magazine. If you want blueberry muffins in a hurry, this recipe is for you!!!


Basic Muffins
makes 12 regular muffins or 8 jumbo ones


1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled ***I know this sounds like A LOT of butter. It's technically one tablespoon for each muffin.***
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt


1 1/2 cups blueberries - fresh or frozen
zest of half a lemon ***My addition and optional.***
turbinado sugar for sprinkling ***Turbinado sugar or raw sugar are those brown little packets from your local coffee shop. Just snag a couple extra packets the next time you grab a cup-a-joe.***


Preheat oven to 375˚. Line your muffin tin with paper cupcake liners or brush with melted butter and dust with flour. Set aside.

***You can also cut out large squares of parchment paper and press them into the muffin tins. Or you can buy them pre-cut and pre-formed online.***


In a small bowl or measuring cup - mix together melted butter, eggs, milk and vanilla. ***If you're using lemon zest, add into wet ingredients.***
In a large bowl - whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
Add wet mixture to dry ingredients. Gently fold/mix until moist. Do not over mix. Add in your desired mix-ins. ***Here is where you add your blueberries.*** Gently fold.
Using a large cookie scoop, divide evenly into your prepared muffin tin. 

***Sprinkle with turbinado sugar for added texture and crunch. I've also dotted mine with more blueberries.***


Bake for 15 - 20 minutes.
Remove muffins from their tin and cool slightly. Serve warm.


Mix-Ins
Corn Muffins - reduce flour to 1 cup and add 3/4 cup of cornmeal and 1/3 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels (optional).
Berry Muffins - fold in 1 1/2 cups blueberries, raspberries, or chopped strawberries.
Cherry Pecan Muffins - fold in 3/4 cup chopped pecans and 3/4 cup dried cherries.
Chocolate Chip Muffins - reserve 1 tablespoon of flour from the recipe to toss with 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips. Fold into batter. the flour prevents the chips from sinking to the bottom.
Other yummy mix-ins - 3/4 cup chopped banana and 1/2 cup walnuts. 1/3 cup of peanut butter and dollops of raspberry jelly on top before baking. 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and 3/4 cup chopped apple.

faux oreos - recipe #4 of 7 days of sweets

I'm a freak about "faux" foods and when I find a recipe that sounds like the real deal, I make it immediately. Like faux Oreos.....The original reipe is from one of my favorite blogs, Serious Eats, and back in December they featured these in a peppermint holiday version. I'm sticking with the original.


For Valentine's Day, cut the chocolate cookies out with a heart cutter and tint the white filling pink. Wish I thought of that when I was making these......


Fauxreos
borrowed from the blog Serious Eats 


INGREDIENTS
3 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
3 3/4 ounces sugar
1 1/2 ounces brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 plus 1/8 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 egg yolks
4 ounces all purpose flour, sifted
3 ounces cocoa powder, sifted
 
FOR THE FILLING
from Martha Stewart
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
pinch of salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract


TO MAKE THE CHOCOLATE COOKIES Using a hand or stand mixer set to medium speed, cream together butter, both sugars, salt baking powder, baking soda, and vanilla extract until combined. With mixer still running, add in egg yolks one at a time. Once incorporated, shut off mixer and scrape bowl down with a rubber spatula.

Turn mixer to its lowest setting. Dump in flour and cocoa all at once. The mixture will be stiff. Continue mixing until uniform. Shut off mixer. Use a spatula to scrape the dough from the bowl and knead lightly to form a smooth ball. Use your hands to flatten into a disc.

***You may begin rolling the dough right away, or you may wrap it with plastic and refrigerate for up to a week.
***If you've kept the dough refrigerated, let it sit at room temperature to soften before starting to roll.

Preheat oven to 350° F. Sift some cocoa powder onto the counter (using cocoa instead of flour gives the Fauxreos their uniquely dark color). Use a rolling pin to roll the dough to 1/8" thickness (as thick as 3 dimes, stacked).

When finished, slide a metal spatula between the dough and counter to loosen. This will prevent the cookies from sticking.

A 2" round cutter makes perfect "Oreos" but use any cutter you like. Cut out the cookies and use a metal spatula to lift and transfer to cookie sheet.

Arrange cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet. The cookies will not spread during baking, so they may be arranged quite close together. Set the sheets aside.

Gather up, knead, and re-roll the remaining dough scraps, likewise cutting and arranging on a cookie sheet.

Bake for about 12 minutes, or until quite firm to the touch. If your oven has an uneven heating element, rotate the cookie sheets after six minutes. Once the cookies have baked, cool thoroughly, directly on the cooling rack.

TO MAKE THE FILLING In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add confectioners' sugar, granulated sugar and pinch of salt, beating until combined. Beat in vanilla extract.

Using a spatula, transfer half the filling to a small pastry bag fitted with a plain tip. Alternately you can use a Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off as a makeshift pastry bag. ***I found this filling to be a little "stiff". I just spooned small amounts onto my cookies.***

TO ASSEMBLE THE COOKIES Flip half of the wafers upside down. Onto each, pipe or spoon vanilla filling. Place a cookie on top and press down with your fingers, applying very even pressure so the filling will spread uniformly across the cookie. 

Transfer cookies to an airtight container and refrigerate for a couple of hours. Refrigerating the cookies will solidify the filling and bonding it with the chocolate cookies. 

***My apologies for the weight measurements. If you don't have a scale, I'm sure there is somewhere on the web to convert. If not, drop me a comment and I will send you the measurements. Sorry!!!***

torie's cherry chocolate chunk cookies - recipe #1 of 7 days of sweets

Valentine's Day is a week away and I'm honoring it by making a week's worth of sweets. On this particular day, it doesn't always mean giving your sweetie a heart shaped box of chocolates or a dozen red roses. Cupcakes, cookies, brownies or anything "sweet" are also things that can say, "I love you."

Pre-pastry school, Torie's Cherry Chocolate Chunk Cookies used to be my go-to recipe when I wanted to say "thank you", "I love you", or just because. This cookie has everything-but-the-kitchen- sink in it and I'm usually not a fan of dried fruit in baked goods but for some reason it really works here. 


I have an enormous collection of sweet and savory recipes. Mainly sweet ones of course. This recipe used to be at the top of my baking list and as of this weekend, I probably hadn't made them in over five years. What a shame.....


This recipe is pretty straight forward. There isn't anything fancy in the mixing method and you should be able to find most or all of the ingredients at your local grocery store.


Torie's Cherry Chocolate Chunk Cookies
The Martha Stewart Show 2009 


INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups oats ***Whole rolled oats. Not quick cooking oats***
1 cup dried cherries ***I buy Trader Joe's Dried Pitted Tart Montmorency Cherries***
4 1/2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped ***In a pinch, chips are fine but make sure they're bittersweet and NOT semi-sweet because you don't want to add any more sweetness***
1 cup toffee pieces  ***These are Hershey's Heath English Toffee Bits. If your grocery store doesn't have them they're available on Amazon.***

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. In a bowl, sift together flour and baking soda. 

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and both sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl ounce or twice during mixing. Add the egg; mix on high to combine. Add the vanilla; mix to combine. Scrape down the sides of bowl.

Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until well combined. Add the oats, cherries, chocolate, and toffee pieces; mix to combine after each addition. ***I usually mix the oats, cherries, chocolate chunks and toffee bits together in a separate bowl and add them in all at once.***

Spoon a heaping tablespoon of dough onto a lined baking sheet. ***You can use a cookie scoop here. I like these jumbo-size, so I use a 2 ounce scoop.*** Repeat, spacing 2 inches or more apart depending on the size of your cookies.

Bake cookies until golden brown, 14 to 16 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through. ***The jumbo cookies I baked baked for 16 minutes. The cookies will appear "raw" in the middle. Leave on the baking sheet for a few minutes so that they will finish baking. *** Transfer to a wire rack to cool. 

Store in an airtight container up to 2 days.

 ***I honestly think these cookies have a longer life than 2 days. If your container is super airtight, you may be able to stretch their life to up to 5 days.***

mini sour cherry pies

It's barely mid January and I'm already wishing for warmer weather. A few snowflakes were in the air over the weekend and it quickly turned into annoying rain as the temperature warmed up slightly. And I mean.....Slightly.

There's not a lot going on at the farmer's market these days but in the summer, during a two-week window of sour cherry season, I stock up my freezer with these tart ruby red gems. Before I moved to the East Coast, I had no idea that sour cherries even existed. I mean, I've indulged on cherry Hostess hand pies and actually HAD cherry pie, but I never knew it was made from sour cherries. Sour cherries are not the kind of cherries you want to eat raw. They're called "sour" cherries for a reason because they are sour but add sugar plus a few other ingredients and they're perfect for baking into a pie or mini sour cherry pies......

In the summer, my husband gets me a few baskets, I hand pit them, and freeze them for future baked goods. That way we have summer any time we want to.

Mini Sour Cherry Pies

from Martha Stewart for Individual Sour Cherry Pies

Makes 6 3-inch mini pies

INGREDIENTS

6 mini pie tins

One half Easy Pie Dough, cut into (6) 3 1/2-inch circles for base of mini tins and (6) 2 3/4-inch circles for tops. Fit the 3 1/2-inch circles into mini tins, leaving 1/4-inch around the lip of the pans. Chill in the frig along with the (6) 2 3/4-inch circles until ready to fill.

2 cups sour cherries - fresh or frozen ***If frozen, defrost and drain thoroughly***

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons cornstarch

drop of vanilla extract

pinch of lemon zest

a small squeeze of lemon juice

1 tablespoon heavy cream

Preheat oven to 375˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.

In a medium-sized bowl, mix together sugar, flour and cornstarch. Add cherries, vanilla extract, lemon zest and lemon juice. Combine until all of the cherries are coated with the sugar/flour mixture.

Divide the cherry filling evenly into your prepared mini tins. Dab a little water onto the rims of the pie crust to adhere the tops. Gently press them together with the tines of a fork. ***Make sure the two crusts are sealed to prevent the filling from oozing out while baking*** Cut a small vent on the top of pies. Brush lightly with heavy cream.

Bake for 30 - 40 minutes or until the crust is light golden brown around the edges. Cool on a wire rack.

peanut butter-n-jelly bars and a happy new year!!!

It's New Year's Eve Eve and it's time to bust out your resolutions. A lot of people have dieting on their lists, but before you start your New Year's diet, go into your kitchen and make these. Now! 

When I was tasting them earlier I was kinda convincing myself that these would be a great breakfast item. Yeah, right?! These peanut butter-n-jelly bars are just wrong.....but in a good way.

Peanut Butter-n-Jelly Bars
2001 Holiday Cookie Issue by Martha Stewart

Makes about 3 dozen

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter @ room temperature, plus more for pan
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups smooth peanut butter ***Other recipes called for Skippy, but I went with a natural and organic peanut butter***
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs @ room temperature
3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
1 1/2 teaspoons table salt ***I used kosher salt***
1 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 cups strawberry jam ***I like raspberry***
1 cup salted peanuts, roughly chopped 

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper. Butter the parchment paper, dust with flour, and tap out the excess; set aside. Place butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add peanut butter and vanilla and mix to combine. Add eggs one at a time; incorporating each egg until it's creamy and a homogeneous mixture, about 2 minutes.

2. Whisk together flour, salt and baking powder. Add to the butter mixture, and beat on low speed until combined. Transfer two-thirds of the mixture to your prepared pan. Press down dough evenly with your fingers or an offset spatula. Using your offset spatula, spread 1 cup of jam on top peanut butter mixture. With the remaining third of dough, drop small clumps/dollops of peanut butter dough on top of jam. Sometimes the jam is completely covered by the third of the peanut butter dough. Not to worry, here is where you would dollop the remainder 1/2 cup of jam in tablespoons on top of the peanut butter clumps. Sprinkle with chopped salted peanuts.

3. Bake until golden, 45 to 60 minutes, rotating halfway through. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Run a knife around the edges and refrigerate, 1 to 2 hours. Cut into about thirty-six 1 1/2-by-2-inch pieces.

For Chris, Sarah, Eddie & Marilyn.....Happy New Year!!!

cinnamon swirl bread

I bet you're thinking that baking homemade bread is difficult and time consuming. It's really not that difficult but IT IS time consuming and you do need A LOT of patience. But it's worth the wait. Trust me. You can be semi-lazy when making this bread because the only thing that requires work is your poor stand mixer. If it were human it would be pooped after mixing this dough. So stop your whining and grab the ingredients to make cinnamon swirl bread. 


Cinnamon Swirl Bread
adapted from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
Makes two 9-by-5 inch loaves


***The original recipe is Cinnamon-Raisin Bread but since I'm not a fan of raisins in baked goods, I omitted them from my recipe.***


For the DOUGH:
1 envelope (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
2 cups warm whole milk (about 110˚F) 
2 pounds 2 ounces (about 6 1/2 cups) all purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into pieces, plus more for pans
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2 1/2 teaspoons course salt
1 cup raisins (optional)
1 tablespoon cinnamon


For the FILLING:
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon


Vegetable oil, for bowl and plastic wrap
Egg wash and for filling - 1 large egg, lightly beaten


Make the dough: In a large bowl of an electric mixer, sprinkle the yeast over the warm milk; whisk to combine. Add the flour, butter, sugar, 2 eggs, and salt. Attach bowl to mixer fitted with the dough hook. Mix on low speed until all of the ingredients are well combined, about 3 minutes. Raise the speed to medium-low and continue to mix until the dough is uniformly smooth and the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 3 minutes more.


Turn the dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Pat dough into a 9-inch round, about 1 1/4 inches thick. Sprinkle with raisins (if using) and 1 tablespoon cinnamon, and knead until they are just incorporated. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, and cover with oiled plastic wrap; let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. ***I place mine in my oven (that is turned OFF) with a pot of recently boiled water***


Return the dough onto a lightly floured work surface, and pat into a round. Fold in the following manner: Fold the bottom third of the dough up, the top third down, and the right and left sides over, tapping the dough after each fold to release excess flour, and pressing down to seal. Return the dough to the bowl, seam side down, and let rise again until double in bulk, about 40 minutes.

Generously butter two 9-by-5-inch loaf pans; set aside. ***I buy disposable loaf pans from my grocery store which are a little smaller (8 1/2 x 4 1/2) but makes no difference*** 


Make the filling: Combine sugar and cinnamon with 2 tablespoons water in a small bowl. ***Doing this step will produce a cinnabon-like quality to the bread. It will be oozing with cinnamoney goodness*** Return the dough to a lightly floured work surface, and divide in half. Roll out one half to a 12-by-10-inch rectangle; brush with beaten egg, and sprinkle with half the filling. Repeat with remaining dough.


***You can also just combine the cinnamon and sugar minus the water. The cinnamon sugar mix swirled into the bread will result in a "tighter swirl" reminiscent to a store bought loaf, but since you're making it from scratch....better!!!! Don't bother brushing the dough with egg before sprinkling the cinnamon sugar on top. Place it on a lightly floured work surface, divide in half, roll out to the size needed and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture***


With a short end of the rectangle facing you, fold in both sides of the dough, about 1 inch. Then roll the dough towards you, gently pressing as you go to form a tight log. gently roll the log back and forth to seal the seam. ***Or do what I do and pinch the seam closed*** Place the loaf in your prepared pan, seam side down. Repeat with the remaining rectangle. Cover loosely with oiled plastic wrap, let rise in a warm place until dough rises above the rim of the pan, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 425˚F.


Brush the tops of the loaves with the beaten egg, and transfer pans to a parchment/foil lined rimmed baking sheet. Bake, rotating pans halfway through, until the loaves are golden brown, about 45 minutes. (If the tops begin to brown too quickly, tent with aluminum foil.) Turn out the bread onto a wore rack to cool completely before slicing. The bread can be kept, wrapped in plastic, at room temperature up to 4 days. 


***I wrap mine up in parchment paper and store it at room temperature in an airtight container. After a few days, if we have any left, I transfer it to the refrigerator. This bread also freezes well. I tightly wrap it in parchment paper first and then it's wrapped in two layers of plastic wrap. Thaw your bread overnight in the refrigerator the night before consuming. I never know how long it lasts in the freezer because it doesn't last that long.***

You know the smell of Cinnabon buns when you're walking through a mall? This is pretty close and possibly even better. Anything baked with cinnamon is intoxicating! And when you eat this bread toasted with butter, and/or sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, or turned into a pb&j, it's addicting! Thank goodness it makes two loaves.